Rockton Police Department

Inside Crime Prevention Section
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Crime prevention is:

“Being aware that a crime CAN occur, and ANTICIPATING the type, location,

and time, and TAKING ACTION to reduce the chance of it happening.”

There are three elements that must be present before a criminal can commit an illegal act: DESIRE, ABILITY and OPPORTUNITY. By eliminating just one of these components, crime can be averted. While control over the first two elements, DESIRE and ABILITY rests solely with the suspect, you can have considerable impact on the third – OPPORTUNITY.

Crime prevention is largely using instinct, action, and common sense, to eliminate (or greatly reduce) a criminal’s opportunity. Your responsibility lies in removing opportunity to decrease the likelihood of becoming a victim. While the blame for illegal acts rests with the criminal, the fact remains we all have a crucial role to play in the area of crime prevention.

Crime prevention requires a holistic approach involving every member of the community. The collective actions of everyone within a neighborhood are vital to success.

The Rockton Police Department can help you with a wide variety of crime prevention topics. Information is available in the form of booklets, brochures and other handouts that are free to the members of our community. We can also schedule an officer to speak to your group about crime prevention.